Planter



June I2, T923.

R. H. GRIFFITH PLANTER Filed Jan- 3l, 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 @MmeufO/Lau@ @4l/W mM am.,

June f2',` 19723. 1,458,178

I R. H. GRIFFITH PLANTER Filed Jan. 5l. 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Jme 12A,1923.

R. H. GRIFFITH PLANTER Filed Jan. 5l. 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patentedllune l2, i923.

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PTEWF FFEQLE.

RICHARD H. GRIFFITH, OF BELLEVUE, OHIO, ASSIGNOB, TO THE OHIO CULTIVATORCOMPANY, OF BELLEVUE, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

PLANTER.

Application filed January 31, 1921.

To all whomy t may concern.'

Be it known that l, RICHARD H. Gnrrrrrr-r, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Bellevue, in the county of Huron and State of Ohio,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Planters, of whichthe following is a specification. l

My invention relates to improvements in planters, and more particularlyto that class or type known as lister planters commonly used forplanting cotton, corn and the like.

The primary object of the invention is the provision of a generallyimproved planter of the type indicated, which will be simple inconstruction and eflicient in operation.

A further object is to improve the construction and arrangement of theparts whereby the manipulation of a single operating lever willpositively move the furrow opener and covering shovels out of engagementwith the ground and at the same time positively disconnect the feeding.device from its ydriving mechanism. y

lA further and very important object of the invention is the provisionof a supplementary or auxiliary frame carrying the covering devices orshovels so connected and arranged'with respect to the furrow openeroperating or actuating mechanism that said supplement-al frame andshovels may be either actuated simultaneously with the furrow openeractuating mechanism or independently thereof thru suitable foot leverswhereby at the end of the furrow such furrow covering shovels may beheld down after the elevation and disengagement of the furrow opener andfeeding mechanism, respectively, thereby covering the seed lastdeposited in the furrow.

A still further object is to improve the general construction,arrangement and relative mounting of the parts whereby the same may bereadily adjusted and moved to meet the varying exigencies of actualservice.

With the above mentioned and other ends in view, the inventionconsistsin the novel construction, arrangement and combination of parts,hereinafter described, illustrated in one of its embodiments in theaccompanying drawings and particularly pointed out in the appendedclaims.

Referring to the drawings, forming a part of this specification, Figurel is a top plan Serial No. 441,280.

view of a planter constructed in accordance with this invention, thefurrow opener shovel or plow being removed for the purpose of clearerillustration of the adjusting mechanism for moving and supporting theshovel at different angles to the ground line.

Fig. 2, a side elevation of the same, one of the ground wheels beingremoved, and the furrow opener and covering shovels being in their downor operative positions, the feed mechanism being in gear.

Fig. 3, a similar view with the furrow opener and covering shovelselevated, the feed mechanism being thrown out of gear with the axledriving shaft.

Fig. 4, a detached front elevation of the vertically movable furrowopener shank and the adjusting and operating mechanism therefor.

Fig. 5, a cross sectional view, partly in front elevation, taken on line5-5 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 6, a detached detailed view of the variable feed mechanism and gearshift and the connections between the latter and the lever operatedshafts for actuating the furrow opener.

Similar numerals of reference designate like parts thruout all thefigures of the drawings.

The improved planter comprises a main frame l, made up of side membersforwardly converging and connected to a draft pole or tongue 2.Supported by this frame at its forward end is a furrow opener, which, inthe present instance, is omitted (being of vwell known and understoodconstruction) and preferably comprising a shovel mounted on a shovelycarrying shoe 3, for the purposes herein mentioned.

As a means of providing for the adjustment of the furrowl opener eithersimultaneously with or independently of the movements of the other partscarried by the main frame, the shovel carrying shoe 3, is pivotallymounted at the lower end of a vertically movable shank 4, said shank, inthe present instance, being made up of two spaced parallel extendingside bars, the shoe 3 being pivotally mounted between the lower ends ofthe same by means of a transverse pivot bolt 3a. The shovel may besecured on the shoe 3, by means of a connecting bolt 3b, and as a meansof rocking the shoe 3 in the shank 4, whereby the furrow opener or 6,rotatably mounted thereon and-receiving the threaded end 5, of the rod5. yThe head 6,f1is provided with a'handle 6, so 'that by turning'thehandle 6", movement will be imparted tothe rod 5, and thereby causetheshoe 3, toi-move on itsipivotfl, thereby adjusting the lshovel to anydesired angle tothe ground line or surface' being-.traversed by theifurrow opener.

`'formedon'the main frame1,said guide head, y"inrthe present` instance,comprising brace members7', and Sideplfatestheguide or brace members 7,being preferably provided with guide rollers 7b, as shown most clearly Iin yFig. 4 of the drawings.

rlhe main furrow*openerl 1sfollowed-byy a second 4or supplementarylfurrow opener ar- `rangedfin-thefrea-rtherof and'in alignment '9, thelatter extendingforwardly and being ytherwith, said 'second shovel or'plow opening a sub-furrow in which the seed is actually deposited. "Thesecond or ysub-furrow opener is preferably inthe form of a shovel 8,rnarrower in width "than" the front or Imain furrow opener, sa'id shovelS being mounted on a support 8a,carried by an arm rigidly vsecured tothe shank 4, thru the mejdium 'oi' a bracket 10, suitable openings'1:03, `being'formed in lthe'bracket 10, tc receive the fasteningelements orbolts 10, lbyme`ans oie-which 'the arm 9, `and support 8a,and shovel 8, may'be'verti'cally adjusted :relative to the 'main furrowopener and the'fshank 4.

, Rigidly secured' to the support 8a, is a guide "tube or shield 11,which is adapted vto* surround the "lowerend of the grain spout .12.

lAs a means cit actuating andv adjusting the.. mainvand auxiliaryfurrowl openers, the si'demenibers of the main frame y1, areprovided'with Vbearingblocks 13, provided, in vthe present instance,'with an angular shaped rock shaftI 14, provided with forwardlyextending arms 1.5, arranged on ,each sideof the shank" 4., andconnected 'thereto by means of links L16.

4The angular rock lshaft 14, is provided, in thel present instance, withbushings 14, mounted in the bearing blocks or brackets '13, and as `aconvenient means of rocking the shaft 14, -the latter is preferably pro-Vvided at yone vend'with` a hand lever`17, the

latterbeing preferably provided with a spring pressed dog or detent 17a,adapted to co-,operate with a toothed segment 18, on the mainframe toretain' thelever and its connections in adjustedposition.

The main 'frame of the planter Jfurther includes asecond or innersupplementary stationary frame 1, having its sidey members forwardlyconverging and connected to the guide head and tongue portions of theimplement. The main and supplementary stationary iframes land 1,respectively, are suitably connected to brackets 19a, of suitablebearing heads or `sleeves `19,"adaptedto receive andc'ontain an axleidriving shaftQO, thelatter being'provided at its ends with suitable'ground wheels 21. The l'ground wheels 21,' maybe'connected-totheaxleshaft 20, in any suitable and convenient manner,fas for eXainple,-thruthemedium of lclutches 21a, and 'as a means of .driving vthe't'eeding`mechanism of any suitable and conven ient form located'in the'baselor^bottom-por tion oi' lthe freed hopper 22,'the a'irlefshtait 20, isprovided with a [driving gear 123,

adapted to'I mesh 'with' ay second gear 24, `the latter being mounted onan angular shaped driving shaft 25, extending upwardly and mounted inthe saddle""'26, or stationary hopper supportingy member, lthe shaft 25"being provided at "its topwith a suitable fdrivin'g khead 25a, havingsuitable projections 25", to' engagewith a. `feed discof any suitableand -l`convenient type. EvThe base 27, of the'hopper, is vadap'tedtobeideta'chably secured to "the 'stationary`hopper supo-rting saddle26,*by`me'anslof hmgec 'lugs 27a, and the connectingelement'orbolt 27h,at the" iront. lThe'base of ithefhofpper yand-the teedpl'at'es or discsare arranged so that'the sainem'ay be' removed with'the detachmentot'the hopp'eiyfand 'forming `no`part of the; bre'sent invention-neednot bedescribedin detaih v It will bey noted that'the hopper supportingsaddle 26, is mounted on fside' bracket members'l", (see Fig. 5),connected to 'the side members o1 the inner kstationary iframe 1f?. i

As means of throwing,theggear '23, into and out of engagement withthe.gear'Q4-, simultaneously withthe downward and upward movementsl ot thefurrow openers llO thru the furrowy actuating=and n idjusting mechanismherelnb'efore referred ztofthe lever actuated rock shafti14, `isprovided Awith an arm 2S, (see-Eig 6)'iconnectedto a connecting` link`29, .thelatter being con- 1 nected to a lever or farm30%',-the"armi-Orbeing formed-as appart of arotary on oscillatorysleeveBO, thelatterbeing `provided at one side withthelateral cam tace30h, adapted tovengagewith a similarly shapedinclinedfor cam face 19",on one offthe'supporting -headsor sleevesy 19, of the stationary-'frameThe* gear 28, is adaptedto be movedWlong-itir dinally of the drivingshaft against the resistance of a v spring 431, surrounding the axleshaft 2O (see Fig. 5.), it being obvious .that when the rock shaft isyoperated thru the medium of the lever 17, and the furrow openers arethereby elevated, the movement o-f the crank arm 28, will oscillate thesleeve 30, and the action of the cam face 30h, against the adjacent camface 19", will cause such sleeve to press the gear 23, against theresistance of the lspring 31, and thereby disconnect such gear from thesecond gear 24, above, which actuates the feeding mechanism. w

Referring now to the improved furrow covering shovels and the means formount ing and connecting the same to the furrow opener actuatingmechanism whereby such furrow 'covering shovels may be either actuatedsimultaneously with such mechanism, or, when desired, may be actuatedindependently thereof thru suitable foot operated levers or devices, itwill be seen that I provide an auxiliary or supplemental frameconsisting, in the present instance, of'side members or drag bars 32,connected at their lrear by means of a cross bar 32, the weigl'it of thedrag bars` 32,land the shovels carried thereby, and the downwardmovements of the same being adjustably counterbalanced or suspended, asdesired, by means of a suspension chain 33, connected to a loop 34,arrranged within a compression spring 35, the latter being suspended bymeans of a support 36, at the lower end, and connected to a suspendingdevice extending thru the spring 35, and connected to a support 37,secured, in the present instance, to the seat standard or spring 38.

The furrow covering shovels 39, are mounted on suitable standards orshanks 40, the latter being adjustably secured to the sides of the dragbars 32.

rlhe side members 32, of the auxiliary frame, extend forwardly over theaxle shaft 20, and are pivotally connected at their front ends to theforward portions of the main frame 1, and suitable bracket 1c, and bymeans of bearing` bolts 4l.

As a means of flexibly and resiliently connecting the auxiliary frame ordrag bars 32, to the furrow opener actuating mechanism, the front endsof the bars 32, are provided with links 42. extending upwardly thruguide members or brackets 43, formed, in

Athe present instance, on the arms 15, of the rock shaft 14. As a meansof resiliently connecting the links 42, to the arms 15, of the rackshaft, and permitting` an independent movement of the links 42, relativeto the arms 15, the upper ends of the links 42, are surrounded by coiledcompression springs 44, resting on the bearing bracket-s 43, the Lipperends of the springs 44, being provided with guide washers, and the linksbeing threaded and provided with adjusting nuts 42a.

means of a link 47 and the forward end of the rocker being turnedoutwardly affording `a foot pedal 46a, it being obvious that bydepressing the pedal'46, the auxiliary frame carrying the furrowcoveringshovels will be elevated independently of the furrow openeractuating mechanism'.

As a means of depressing the auxiliary frame or drag bars 32, when thefurrow openers have been elevated, or of holding such drag bars downto'cover the seed deposited at the end of the furrow following theelevation of such furrow opening devices, one of the bars 32. may beprovided with a foot pedal 48, as shown mostclearly in Fig. 1 of thedrawing.

Having thus described one of the embodiments of my invention, wit-houthaving attempted to set forth all the forms in which it may be made, orall the modes of its use, what I claim and desire to secure by LettersPatent, is,-

1. In a planter, a main frame provided with a vertically movable furrowopener, an actuating shaft provided with operating arms connected tosaid furrow opener, drag bars carried by said frame, link membersconnected to said drag bars and flexibly and resiliently connected tosaid operating arms of said actuating shaft, and a foot operated rockeron said main frame connected to said drag bars whereby the latter may bemanually moved or held independently of said furrow opener actuatingmechanism.

2. In a planter, a main frame provided with a guide head and avertically movable lshank carrying a furrow opener, an actuating rockshaft on said frame provided with arms and links operativelyv connectedto said shank, drag bars pivotally carried by said frame, link membersflexibly and resiliently connected to said drag bars and said arms ofsaid actuating rock shaft, and a rocker connectedto said drag barswhereby the latter may be moved or held independently of said furrowopener actuating mechanism.

3. In a planter, the combination with a main frame provided with arelatively fixed feed hopper and feeding mechanism, a vertically movablefurrow opener, and furrow opener actuating mechanism connected to andthrowing said feed mechanism into and out of operation with theactuation of said furrow opener into and out of ground engagingposition; of furrow covering shovels spring" connectionsfnnovaloly93ndyfexbfly con'- `neccedl to seid furl-.ow opener actuating `meclmmsmwvherebyf said dmg bens- `and cover .the end. of the uvrowWhenfSaidEu-rof operation.

:opener provided with a, vertically-:movable .arms extendinget the.side-s of-Sael` shan-k,

links-extendingupwamly between seid amns 1nd Saud Shanks, a sprmg.suspended-1supplefinental. Emme carried by* said.' mein? frame :mdfprovided with upwardly extendinglinks slidably and sesiliendlyconnected,to said mms. of z said; rook 1 shaft for simultaneous,lno'mall operation(v ywith' :the latter 'and .vsafd .furrowopener, aJeedhopp'er and eed'mech- ,em-sm: earned by saldi ymzmn' frame, .and

cran-k and link meansy between f seidl rock Shaft' and feed `mechanismfor. ,throwing the letter' into andwoutz'of operation with the rowcovering shovels into and ,out (af-their fg'lound engagingposons,respectively; In =.test1mony whereof I have afxedf RICHARD @nietF11-THQA

